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abookwormspov's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This was an absolute joy to read! Love me an asexual blob girlfriend
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Death, Blood, Grief, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Violence, Stalking, Torture, and War
bebidocrimes's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Usually I don't think 'cozy' and 'horror' mix well, but this book had such a beautiful balance. The action was brutal and detailed, but the relationship felt so soft and genuine. I'm not the right person to speak on asexual representation, but I feel like this does justice to ace couples.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death of parent, Body horror, Death, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Abandonment, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia, Pregnancy, and Classism
thereadingrambler's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
One Sentence Review: Although this book appears to be a black rom-com at first, this book is deeply layered and deals with familial/parental trauma and abuse, the idea of civilization, and what monstrosity means.
Shesheshen is a monster—at least that is what everyone says. She is happily living in her lair with her pet bear, Blueberry, hunting down food when she needs it when she is woken from her slumber by a trio of monster hunters. Weakened, she is unable to kill them all and in her flight, she falls off a cliff, she assumes to her death. But she wakes up, wrapped in blankets, her wounds stitched up, and an unknown woman feeding her broth. Used to violence from humans, she doesn’t trust this woman, but Homily appears to be genuine and unaware that Shesheshen is a monster. Unfortunately, Homily reveals that she is hunting a monster who lives in the area who has cursed her family. Thus begins a confusing romance between monster and monster-hunter that manages to touch on so many complex subjects in such a caring and nuanced way I was continually impressed.
First and foremost, the book deals with the idea of the monster. The monster, especially the female monster, is a complicated figure in literature and media (my friend wrote her whole doctoral dissertation on this!). She is the site of many anxieties about women and the threat they could (and often do) pose to society. Shesheshen takes her deadliness as not only a given but a natural and logical response to her experiences. She stands as a foil to “civilization,” she is constantly questioning this entire concept and finds so many of the requirements of civilization to be baffling. She is a threat to the nebulous concept of civilization (which is the term she uses) in so many ways: literally, as she is the apex predator extraordinaire of the area, but also she disrupts the entire political and economic structure of the isthmus where she lives. Monsters are disruptive and dangerous but often in good and necessary ways.
As her relationship with Homily develops, Shesheshen is confronted with abuse and trauma. I was impressed with how this is handled within the book. In many romances, someone’s trauma is magicked away once they are in a loving, supportive romantic relationship, but Homily is not somehow free of her trauma triggers and responses once Shesheshen is in her life. In fact, Shesheshen realizes that she has fallen in love with Homily’s pain, and they have to renegotiate the relationship so Shesheshen is supporting Homily as she works through what happened to her. And the book doesn’t end with Homily being “fine;” it ends with hope for Homily and Shesheshen to have a strong relationship where they both will be made better and able to work through their trauma, pain, and emotional needs with each other as support.
This book is a little chaotic plot-wise. It is the author’s debut novel so I’m willing to be a little more forgiving, but the final 25% jumps through a number of twists very quickly. I didn’t disbelieve any of the twists, and they did raise the stakes in interesting ways, but the reader was never given a lot of time with the implications of these twists. Since this is a romantasy (technically), I think the plot fumbled a bit when trying to balance the romance climax with the fantasy climax. Obviously not in a way that ruined the book for me, but I did find myself pulled out of the book a bit, particularly when Shesheshen experienced the same consequences three or four times in a row from different confrontations. While each confrontation gave us more progression and development character and plot-wise, knowing how Shesheshen would recover every time did take away from the suspense and tension. On the other hand, this is a romance so the reader knows there is ultimately going to be a happy ending.
I would recommend this book to people who liked the tone and hijinks of Dead Cat Tail Assassins or the character depth of The Woods All Black or are chasing the more complex romantasy of The Emperor and the Endless Palace. I would also recommend this to people who are looking for something that deals with familial/parental abuse and trauma the MC’s partner has experienced and the impact that has on romantic relationships.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Blood, Cannibalism, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Domestic abuse
gawdz0rz's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
legitimately a fantastic book about finding love, learning how to deal with new relationships, and overcoming trauma, but with a monster twist.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Animal cruelty, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Physical abuse and Blood
Minor: Child death
pm_me_book_recs's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Death, Excrement, Gore, Child death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Gaslighting, Body horror, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, and Violence
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Classism
rambles's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A delightfully weird book. The ending dragged a bit but I get what the author was going for.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Blood, Gore, Body horror, Death, and Child abuse
kitsuneheart's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Cross-cultural relationships rely on clear communication and not making assumptions. Shesheshen, a blob monster, learns this when she realizes her new human girlfriend, Homily, doesn’t consider laying your eggs in your partner so they may be eaten alive by your young…to be the logical goal of dating.
Somehow, as a reader, I’m with Shesheshen on this. Infest me, Mommy.
This is definitely a pick for queer readers with family trauma. Despite this book being about a ravenous blob-monster on the run, so much of the real drama and interest is about Homily’s ruthless family, and how they have left scars on her past.
It’s also a rather asexual romance, where the asexuality is not a point of tension, which I really appreciate.
Somehow, I found this book almost cozy. The horror definitely comes through in the end, but I was so much more invested in Homily and Shesheshen’s romance and latching onto their every scrap of domestic bliss. I loved the end, and felt quite satisfied. There doesn’t need to be more. It’s just…nice. Very nice.
Advanced reader copy provided by the publisher.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Violence, Bullying, Blood, Body horror, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Body shaming, Death, Gaslighting, Murder, and Physical abuse
Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia, Animal cruelty, and Death of parent
kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
this was so fun and sad and unique and gory and strange and sweet and heartwarming and gut wrenching and whimsical and… you get the gist, I LOVED this.
heavier subject matter than I expected, but I think it balances well with the comedy and gore. this gave me the same “I’ve never read anything like this before” feeling as Walking Practice; I’m so pleased to have found another book for that mental shelf
I’d write forever if I had to say all the reasons I liked this, so I’ll leave it at: 5 stars, favorite shelf, so fresh and so so hard to put down.
heavier subject matter than I expected, but I think it balances well with the comedy and gore. this gave me the same “I’ve never read anything like this before” feeling as Walking Practice; I’m so pleased to have found another book for that mental shelf
I’d write forever if I had to say all the reasons I liked this, so I’ll leave it at: 5 stars, favorite shelf, so fresh and so so hard to put down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Child death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Blood, Body horror, and Murder
Moderate: Vomit, Grief, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Animal death, Physical abuse, and Animal cruelty
bookboxbabe's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
this is the weirdest book i’ve ever read but i think i liked it?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Body horror, Murder, Gore, Animal cruelty, and Blood
doodletaco's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This might be my new favorite book. Somehow combines wholesomeness and body horror into a package written with an incredible amount of compassion for the characters. Finished this in a day.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Blood, Body horror, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Gore, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Vomit and Excrement